Wednesday, October 3, 2012

Miss Moorthy Investigates - Ovidia Yu

It is Singapore of the 1970s and
the Singapore Strangler is on the prowl, targeting single successful women. While the police hunt desperately for clues, the newspapers frontpage his gruesome murders. With characteristic wit and dry humor, Yu
explains how the Strangler has captured public imagination.

“The Strangler’s terror-hold on
the female imagination had had unexpected social repercussions.Single, successful career women were
stampeding to get married to a man, any man.”

Miss Moorthy,
former entertainer, now pursuing her career of choice as a school teacher was
content to read about the infamous Strangler in the paper and double check the
locks on her doors. But when a teacher, Evelyn Ngui,working in
her school is murdered, the story acquires a personal angle for Miss
Moorthy.

Miss Moorthy has a personal run in with the Strangler when turns up
at the apartment she shares with a former school friend, Connie,
a producer of popular TV serials. The Strangler was apparently looking to murder Connie because she fits the profile of a single, succesful woman, but hunter turns into hunted, as he is efficiently apprehended by the
two women. As Miss Moorthy tells us, catching burglars is easier than seen on
TV.

“All it
took was a little presence of mind and a good brick. Nothing to it, really.”

Miss
Moorthy finds out from her boyfriend, Dr Anthony Tan, the Forensic Pathologist
in charge of the case, that the Singapore Strangler, has not killed Evelyn and that the suspect list includes a friend of
Anthony’s, who was once dating Evelyn.

Miss
Moorthy takes it upon herself to find out who murdered Evelyn. Was it the
married man Evelyn was having an affair with? And why is David, Anthony’s
friend and former boyfriend of Evelyn edging towards a nervous breakdown if he
had nothing to do with the murder?

On
a parallel track, Miss Moorthy is faced with belligerent parents who want to
ensure their children get the best marks, inquisitive students who believe
their teacher has all the answers, a girl who will not speak, a mysterious
money transfer into Evelyn’s account and a blue and white rabbit that goes
missing.

There
are enough clues in the story for the reader to figure out the murderer. This
is not a classic whodunit in the sense it fails to keep up the suspense to the
end. But read it anyway for its interesting glimpses of life in newly
independent Singapore, cheeky wit, a feminist take on society and entertaining
characters whose oddities and eccentricities are worth a few chuckles.